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Monday, June 18, 2012

Getting some culture.

Last week, I had the glorious luxury of a day off. I spent the morning doing responsible things, like going to the gym and the grocery store, but my afternoon was devoted to pure New York-ness. After a homemade lunch (tomato and avocado salad), I hoofed over to Fifth Avenue for a visit to the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

I spent a good deal of time wandering around the new - and incredible - galleries devoted to Islamic art, then made my way through Impossible Conversations, the Costume Institute's exhibit devoted to Elsa Schiaparelli and Miuccia Prada. (Verdict? Really awesome, but nothing will ever beat last year's McQueen tribute.)

Eventually, I made my way up to the rooftop, which is one of my very favorite spots in the city. Because the museum sits just inside Central Park, it doesn't matter that you're only a few stories up - in fact it helps, because you end up feeling like you're perched right on the tops of the trees. The views are incredible to the west, north and south. That right there is Cleopatra's Needle, which sits just behind the museum. (Remember the last visit I paid to it? The weather was a bit different on Friday.)

Every summer, the museum hosts an outdoor exhibit on the roof. Like 2010's bamboo forest, you can climb this one, called Cloud City. (Nerd alert: my first thought was of Star Wars.) Created by artist Tomás Saraceno, the sculpture is a group of geometric pods, mirrored on some sides, open on others. Climbing through it must be pretty awesome, if a little disorienting. Sadly, I didn't get to find out on this visit, since I had to take off to run some errands. Before I left, though...

...I snapped this photo of the gorgeous apartment buildings on Central Park West. I once heard that one of the reasons Fifth Avenue apartments are more expensive (on average) than their crosstown siblings is because their view is so much better than the reverse. I don't know if it's true, but I'd believe it.